NBC Touts China’s Image as ‘Champion of the Developing World’ in Genocide Games Broadcast

NBC’s coverage of the Opening Ceremonies of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics touted China as “a champion of the developing world” and highlighted the presence of a Uyghur participant as an “in-your-face response” to those who condemn the Games as a celebration of genocide.

The Chinese Communist Party is currently engaging in genocide against the Uyghur people, forcing millions into concentration camps, imposing widespread forced sterilization policies, and enslaving significant portions of that population. The abuses – along with violent repression of political dissidents, members of multiple religious faiths, and other ethnic minorities – have led to calls around the world for countries, sponsors, and broadcasters like NBC to boycott the Winter Olympics.

No government in the world boycotted the Olympics on those grounds. One country, North Korea, announced an Olympics boycott in a bizarre attempt to  condemn the United States, which was not involved in the planning or execution of the event. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned North Korea from the Games last year, however, further rendering the protest impotent.

One NBC announcer claimed that “Western countries [are] boycotting these Olympics over human rights issues,” an apparent reference to a failed effort by the government of President Joe Biden to organize a “diplomatic boycott” of the Olympics. A “diplomatic boycott” is not a boycott as diplomats do not compete in Olympic sports, but Biden’s administration could not even put together that meager effort, and was later exposed as applying for visas so that diplomats could attend the event.

The anchor made the case, anyway, that China had defied this poor “boycott” attempt.

“Yeah, it’s worth remembering that while Western countries may be boycotting these Olympics over human rights issues, China styles itself as a champion of the developing world, and it has plenty of support in countries from Africa to Latin America where its investments are building up local economies,” the anchor said. – READ MORE